And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Mat 28:18-20)
God gave humanity reign and rule over the earth. They were to exercise their dominion under the reign and rule of God. Authority was theirs because He delegated it to them. Ownership and rights still belonged to God, but He entrusted rule and care of all living and creeping things into their care.
This is very much like a Power of Attorney – gives you the authority to represent someone and act on their behalf. Now this is the thing, a power of attorney is only valid as long as both parties are alive.
If either party dies, the power of attorney is no longer valid.
On the day that Adam and Eve partook of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil they died spiritually, and the authority He had delegated to them was no longer theirs. Our dominion was lost.
In our dead spiritual state, however, we still have that imprint of what God intended for us. - to have dominion. That explains why we still want to climb mountains, cross oceans, go to the Moon and Mars.
The entire point of the Cross is to bring us to life, spiritually, to restore us each to the relationship Adam and Eve had before the Fall.
All of the Old Testament from that point on is preparing us for something glorious, and that is the restoration of spiritual life to those who are spiritually dead, and the revival of that Power of Attorney granted to us giving us dominion.
As He said, “The thief comes but to kill and steal and destroy. I came that they might have life, and have it abundantly.”
